News on influenza A(H1N1)
14.09.2009
Vaccination against influenza A(H1N1) 2009 intended to start in early October 2009
The Chief Epidemiologist expects that pandemic vaccine will arrive in Iceland in the beginning of October 2009. The Icelandic health authorities have purchased 300,000 doses of the vaccine which will be delivered in four shipments, the last one in the beginning of January 2009.
The vaccinations will be performed only at Health Care Centres, the Landspitali University Hospital and the Akureyri Hospital in the North of Iceland. The vaccine will come in vials of 10 doses. The antigen has to be mixed with an adjuvant before it is used and it has to be given within 24 hours.
It is assumed that every person has to be vaccinated twice within 3 – 4 weeks to ensure maximum protection against the pandemic influenza.
The World Health Organization recommends that health authorities in every country organises and identifies those groups that need to be vaccinated first. Therefore, the Chief Epidemiologist has sent recommendations to health care workers to the effect that people in a specified target group I should be vaccinated first and revaccinated when the next shipment arrives four weeks later.
Target group I is estimated to contain 70,000 people. These people will be given three weeks to turn up for vaccination.
Target group II includes all individuals aged 6 months to18 year of age. They will follow target group I and will be offered vaccinations in the beginning of November this year.
The remaining vaccine will then be offered to all other citizens in Iceland.
Target group I
- Health care workers and caretakers working in nursing homes and homes for disabled people.
- Patients with the following underlying diseases: 1)
- Serious heart conditions (heart failure and serious congenital heart diseases)
- Serious respiratory diseases that need continuous prophylactic medication (including asthma)
- Metabolic disorders (insulin dependent diabetes, corticosteroid deficiency)
- Neurological disorders that may compromise respiration
- Serious kidney dysfunction
- Serious liver diseases (cirrhosis)
- Obesity (>40 in body mass index)
- Immunodeficiency (such as due to cancer therapy and transplant recipients)
- Pregnant women
- Policemen, firefighters, rescue workers and paramedics 2).
1) On the one hand, physicians of patients with the above-mentioned diseases are expected to encourage their patients to get vaccinated at the Health Care Centre they belong to and, on the other hand, patients with the above-mentioned diseases are supposed to contact their physicians for evaluation of whether they qualify for target group I.
The physicians fill out a standardised form for each patient they deem qualified for vaccination as indicated above. The patient will present the form at the Health Care Centre when he/she comes there for vaccination.
2) The National Commissioner of Police in Iceland, Department of Civil Protection will define those who are vital for national security.
Chief Epidemiologist for Iceland
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